Tête-de-pont(Fr.). A field fortification in front of a bridge, to cover the retreat of an army across a river. They are generally formed in the shape of a redan, a system of crémaillères, horn- or crown-works, or portions of star-and-bastioned forts. In order to add to the defense oftétes-de-pont, reduits have been constructed within them, and the dimensions of their parapets are in general made larger than those of any other field-work, on account of their great importance. Sometimes the area inclosed by atête-de-pontis temporarily made use of as a depot for the stores necessary for the troops, in which case its tracing should present a strong point of defense, well provided with artillery, and affording in several points egress. The tracing which has been found the best for the passage of extensive trains of wagons and artillery, as well as columns of troops, is formed of crémaillères, extending in such a manner as to inclose a large area, and leaving behind each a passage well guarded and secured by second crémaillères, fronting the passage, and forming a second line. Additional strength will be given totêtesof every kind by constructing small redans or batteries on the opposite side of the river, the fire from which may defend the ground in front of the salient, and flank the faces of thetête-de-pont.
Tettenhall(Staffordshire). It was probably at this place, then named Testenheal, that the Danes were defeated by the Anglo-Saxons sent against them by Edward the Elder, August 6, 910.
Tetuan.A seaport town on the north coast of Africa, 22 miles south of Ceuta. It was taken by the Spaniards under O’Donnell, February, 1860; and the treaty of Madrid, by which the city was evacuated in favor of the Spaniards, was concluded October 30, 1861.
Teutoburg Forest.Probably situated between Detmold and Paderborn, in North Germany, where Hermann, or Arminius, and the Germans defeated the Romans under Varus with great slaughter in the year 9. This defeat was regarded at Rome as a national calamity.
Teutonic.A term applied to a group of nations, as well as languages, forming an important division or stem of the Aryan family. Of the various tribes and nations spoken of as inhabiting Northern Europe in ancient times, it is often difficult to determine which were really of Germanic race, and which Celtic or Slavic. Of undoubted German nations who took part in the destruction of the Roman empire the most prominent were theGoths(which see),Lombards(which see),Vandals(which see), andFranks(which see). The term Teutonic is derived fromTeutones, the name of a nation or tribe first mentioned by Pytheas, whowrote about 320B.C., as then inhabiting a part of the Cimbric Chersonesus, or Jutland. For the next 200 years there is no further mention of the Teutones, that is, not until 113B.C., when they appear in history as ravaging Gaul, and in conjunction with the Cimbri and Ambrones, threatening the very existence of the Roman republic. The Cimbri having gone into Spain, the Teutones and Ambrones were at length defeated by C. Marius in a great battle at Aqua Sextiæ, in Gaul, 102B.C.A similar victory was gained by Marius in the following year over the Cimbri in the plains of Lombardy.
Teutonic Knights.One of the more celebrated of the military and religious orders to which the Crusades gave birth. The sufferings of the Christian soldiers at the siege of Acre excited the sympathy of certain merchants of Bremen and Lübeck, who rendered such important services by the erection of hospitals and otherwise, that Duke Frederick of Suabia, with the sanction of Pope Clement III. and the emperor Henry VI., enrolled them in an order of knighthood. The habit of the order was a white mantle with a black cross; and the knights took vows of poverty and chastity, which in later times were not very strictly interpreted. In the course of the 13th century, they were, with the sanction of the pope, engaged in a bloody war to enforce Christianity on the heathen nations inhabiting the southern shores of the Baltic, which resulted in the acquisition by the order of Prussia, Livonia, Courland, and other adjoining territories. Warriors from all parts of Europe in that and the following century joined their standard, including Henry IV. of England, accompanied by 300 attendant knights and men-at-arms. The conquests of the order raised it to the rank of a sovereign order, with a territory extending from the Oder to the Baltic, and embracing a population of between 2,000,000, and 3,000,000, the grand master having his seat at Marienburg, Prussia. The decline of the order began in the 15th century, and its fall was brought about partly by internal dissensions, and partly by the attacks of neighboring states. At the peace of Presburg in 1805, the emperor of Austria obtained the rights and revenues of the grand master, but in 1809 the order was abolished by Napoleon, its lands passing to the sovereigns in whose dominions they lay. The Teutonic order, however, still continues to preserve a titular existence in Austria.
Tewkesbury.A town of England, in Gloucestershire, on the Avon, and near its confluence with the Severn, 10 miles northeast from Gloucester. It is a very ancient town. Within a mile of it was fought (May 14, 1471) the famous battle of Tewkesbury, in which the Yorkists under Edward IV. and Richard III. inflicted a signal defeat on the Lancastrians.
Texas.One of the southwestern of the United States of America, is bounded on the southwest by Mexico, from which it is separated by the Rio Grande, and on the east by Arkansas and Louisiana. La Salle, the French explorer, erected a fort on Matagorda Bay, 1687. A Spanish settlement and mission was formed in 1690, but soon abandoned. In 1715, the country was settled by the Spaniards under the name of New Philippines, and several missions established; but the Camanche and Apache Indians, among the most warlike in America, and still the terror of the border settlements, hindered the progress of the country. In 1803, when Louisiana was ceded by France to the United States, Texas, claimed by both Spain and the United States, became a disputed territory. From 1806 to 1816, settlements were formed, and several attempts made to wrest the country from Spain. In one of these, in 1813, 2500 Americans and Mexicans and 700 inhabitants of San Antonio were killed. Mina, a Spanish refugee, gained some successes, but was defeated and shot. Lafitte, a Gulf pirate, made a settlement at Galveston in 1815, but it was broken up in 1821. In 1820, Moses Austin, an American, got a large tract of land from the Mexican government, and began a settlement, which rapidly increased; but many of the settlers were of so lawless a character, that in 1830 the government forbade any more Americans coming into Texas. In 1833, a convention of settlers, 20,000 in number, made an unsuccessful attempt to form an independent Mexican state; and in 1835 a provisional government was formed, Sam Houston chosen commander-in-chief, and the Mexicans driven out of Texas. Santa Anna, president of Mexico, invaded the country with an army of 7500, but after some successes was entirely routed at San Jacinto, April 21, and Texas became an independent republic, acknowledged in 1837 by the United States, and in 1840 by England, France, and Belgium. In December, 1845, Texas was annexed to the United States, but was invaded by Mexico, which had never acknowledged its independence. A war followed (1846-48) in which Mexico was defeated. In February, 1861, Texas joined the Secession, and furnished many soldiers and immense supplies to the Confederate armies. In February, 1866, the ordinance of secession was annulled, and in 1870 the reconstruction was completed, and regular civil government restored.
Thanks.Public acknowledgments for gallant actions.
Thapsus(ruins atDemas). A city on the east coast of Bycazena, in Africa Propria, where Cæsar finally defeated the Pompeian army, and finished the civil war, 46B.C.
Thasos(nowThaso, orTasso). An island in the Grecian Archipelago, belonging to Turkey, off the coast of Roumelia, 30 miles north-northeast of Mount Athos. It was at a very early period taken possession of by the Phœnicians on account of its goldmines. Thasos was afterwards colonized by the Parians, 708B.C.Before the Persian conquest, the Thasians were one of the richest and most powerful tribes in the north of the Ægean. They were subdued by the Persians under Mardonius, and subsequently became part of the Athenian maritime empire. They revolted, however, from Athens in 465B.C., and after sustaining a siege of three years were subdued by Cimon in 463. They were obliged to surrender to the Athenians all their possessions in Thrace, to destroy their fortifications, to give up their ships, and to pay a large tribute for the future. They again revolted from Athens in 411, and called in the Spartans, but the island was again restored to the Athenians by Thrasybulus in 407.
Thaulache(Fr.). Armor and weapons of the ancient French, consisting of small shields (rondelles), and halberd or spear.
Theatre of Operations.SeeStrategy.
Theatre of War.The term for any extent of country in which war is carried on. It is synonymous with “seat of war.â€
Theban Legion.According to tradition, was totally composed of Christians, and consequently submitted to martyrdom rather than attack their brethren during the persecution of the emperor Maximin, or sacrifice to the gods, about 286. Their leader was canonized.
Thebes.The name of a celebrated city; it was formerly the capital of Upper Egypt; it is now in ruins. It revolted against Ptolemy Lathyrus, and was captured after a siege of three years, in 82B.C.
Thebes(nowTheba). The chief city of Bœotia, in ancient Greece, was situated in a plain southeast of the Lake Helice, and northeast of Platææ. The territory of Thebes was calledThebais, and extended eastward as far as the Eubœan Sea. It was the scene of one of the most celebrated wars in the mythical annals of Greece. Polynices, who had been expelled from Thebes by his brother Eteocles, induced six other heroes to espouse his cause, and marched against the city; but they were all defeated and slain by the Thebans. This is usually called the war of the “Seven against Thebes.†A few years afterward, “the Epigoni,†or descendants of the seven heroes, marched against Thebes to revenge their fathers’ death; they took the city and razed it to the ground. It appears, however, at the earliest historical period as a large and flourishing city. The Thebans were from an early period inveterate enemies of their neighbors, the Athenians. Their hatred of the latter people was probably one of the reasons which induced them to desert the cause of Grecian liberty in the great struggle against the Persian power. In the Peloponnesian war the Thebans naturally espoused the Spartan side, and contributed not a little to the downfall of Athens; but they joined the confederacy formed against Sparta in 394B.C.The peace of Antalcidas in 387 put an end to hostilities in Greece; but the treacherous seizure of the Cadmea by the Lacedæmonian general Phœbidas in 382, and its recovery by the Theban exiles in 379, led to a war between Thebes and Sparta, in which the former not only recovered its independence, but forever destroyed the Lacedæmonian supremacy. This was the most glorious period in the Theban annals; and the decisive defeat of the Spartans at the battle of Leuctra in 371 made Thebes the first power in Greece. Her greatness, however, was mainly due to the pre-eminent abilities of her citizens, Epaminondas and Pelopidas; and with the death of the former at the battle of Mantinea in 362, she lost the supremacy which she had so recently gained. The Thebans joined the Athenians in protecting the liberties of Greece; but their united forces were defeated by Philip of Macedon, at the battle of Chæronea, in 338. Soon after the death of Philip and the accession of Alexander, the Thebans made a last attempt to recover their liberty, but were cruelly punished by the young king. The city was taken by Alexander in 336, and was almost entirely destroyed; 6000 inhabitants were slain, and 30,000 sold as slaves. In 316 the city was rebuilt by Cassander, with the assistance of the Athenians. In 290 it was taken by Demetrius Poliorcetes, and again suffered greatly.
Theodolite.An instrument, variously constructed, used, especially in trigonometrical surveying, for the accurate measurement of horizontal angles, and also usually of vertical angles. The theodolite consists principally of a telescope, with cross-wires in its focus, mounted so as to turn both on vertical and horizontal axes, the former carrying a horizontal vernier-plate over a graduated plate or circle for aximuthal angles, and the latter a vertical, graduated arc or semicircle for altitudes,—the whole furnished with leveling-screws and levels for adjusting to the horizon, and mounted on a tripod. It is usually so constructed that a horizontal angle may be repeated indefinitely around the limb, and thus a large number of repetitions added mechanically, to secure greater accuracy in the resulting mean.
Thermidor(i.e., the “Hot Monthâ€). Formed in the calendar of the first French republic the eleventh month, and lasted from July 19 to August 18. The 9th Thermidor of the Republican year 2 (July 27, 1794) is memorable as the date of Robespierre’s fall, and the termination of the “Reign of Terror.†The name of Thermidorians was given to all those who took part in this fortunatecoup d’état, but more particularly to those who were desirous of restoring the monarchy.
Thermopylæ(literally, “the hot gatesâ€). A famous pass leading from Thessaly into Locris, and the only road by which an invading army can penetrate from Northern into Southern Greece. Leonidas, at the headof 300 Spartans and 700 Thespians, at this pass withstood the whole force of the Persians during three days, August 7, 8, and 9, 480B.C., when Ephialtes, a Trachinian, perfidiously leading the enemy by a secret path up the mountains, brought them to the rear of the Greeks, who, thus placed between two assailants, perished gloriously on heaps of their slaughtered foes. One Greek only returned home, and he was received with reproaches for having fled. Here also, Antiochus the Great, king of Syria, was defeated by the Romans, 191B.C.
Thermum,Thermus, orTherma. A strong city, the acropolis of Ætolia, Northern Greece, was captured and ravaged by Philip V. of Macedon, 218 and 206B.C., on account of its favoring the Romans.
Thespiæ.A city of Bœotia, Northern Greece; 700 of its citizens perished with Leonidas at Thermopylæ, August, 480B.C.It suffered much through the jealousy of the Thebans, who destroyed its walls in 372B.C.
Thessalonica(nowSaloniki, more ancientlyTherma). An ancient city of Macedonia, situated at the northeast extremity of the Sinus Thermaicus. It was taken and occupied by the Athenians a short time before the commencement of the Peloponnesian war (432B.C.), but was soon afterward restored by them to Perdiccas. At a later time, it became the capital of the Illyrian provinces. It is celebrated at this period on account of the fearful massacre of its inhabitants by order of Theodosius, in consequence of a riot in which some of the Roman officers had been assassinated by the populace.
Thessaly.The largest division of ancient Greece, lay to the south of Macedonia, and to the east of Epirus. Thessaly was originally inhabited by Æolians, who, however, were either expelled or reduced to slavery by immigrants from Epirus about 1000B.C.The inhabitants of Thessaly have been divided into three classes: (1) There were the Epirote conquerors; (2) those descendants of the original inhabitants, who, although dependent on the nobles, yet possessed a few privileges; and (3) the Penestæ, or those of the original inhabitants who had been reduced to serfdom. Thessaly never played an important part in Grecian history; it was only after the Peloponnesian war it exercised any influence on the affairs of Greece. The Penestæ frequently rebelled against their masters, who were very frequently at war among themselves. Jason caused himself to be elected Tagus of all Thessaly about 374B.C.; was assassinated in 370B.C.The rule of Jason’s successors became so unbearable that, in 353B.C., the old families called in the aid of Philip of Macedon, who, in 344, subjected the country to Macedonia. In 197B.C., it was restored to freedom under the protection of Rome.
Thetford.A town of England, in Norfolk, 95 miles north-northeast of London. It was taken and sacked by the Danes in 870.
Thin, To.To make less numerous; as, to thin the ranks by a heavy discharge of musketry.
Thionville.A fortified town of France, in the department of the Moselle, situated on the Moselle, which is crossed here by a splendid bridge. This place was a residence of the Merovingian and Carlovingian kings, and was repeatedly besieged during the various wars between Austria and France. It was invested by the Germans in August, 1870, and after bombardment, being in flames, surrendered November 24 following.
Thirty, Battle of(Fr.Combat des Trentes). A name given, in English and French history, to a celebrated engagement which took place at a spot known as Midway Oak, half-way between the castles of Josselin and Ploermel, France, March 27, 1351. The French general Beaumanoir, commanding the former post, being enraged at the depredations committed by Bemborough, the English general, challenged him to fight. Upon this it was agreed that thirty knights of each party should meet and decide the contest. The two chiefs presented themselves at the head of their best soldiers and the battle began in earnest. At the first onset the English were successful; but Bemborough having been killed, the French renewed the struggle with redoubled courage and finally won the victory. This was one of the most heroic exploits of the age, and gained such popularity that more than one hundred years later, when speaking of a hard contest, it was usual to say, “There never was such hard fighting since the battle of the Thirty.â€
Thirty Tyrants.A body of thirty magistrates in Athens (404-403B.C.). They were appointed from the aristocratic party, by the Spartans, victorious in the Peloponnesian war. The “tyrants†were guilty of the most cruel and shameless acts, and after one year were expelled by Thrasybulus.
Thirty Tyrants of Rome.A set of military adventurers who from 253 to 268 attempted to establish their own power in various parts of the empire during the reigns of Valerianus and Gallienus. The number thirty is borrowed from that of the famous Athenian tyrants. The names of only nineteen of these adventurers have come down to us.
Thirty Years’ War.Was not properly one war, but rather an uninterrupted succession of wars (1618-1648) in Germany, in which Austria, the most of the Catholic princes of Germany, and Spain, were engaged on one side throughout, but against different antagonists. This long-continued strife had its origin in the quarrels between the Catholics and Protestants of Germany, and the attempts of the former, who were the more powerful body, to deprive the latter of what liberty of worship they had obtained. The severe measures taken by the emperor, the head of the Catholic party, against the Protestant religion, led also tostrictures on their civil rights; and it was to protect their political as well as their religious liberties, that the Protestants formed a union, May 4, 1608, with Frederick IV., the Elector Palatinate, at its head. The rival union of the Catholic powers, under the leadership of the Duke of Bavaria, followed July 11, 1609. In Bohemia, the immense preponderance in numbers (two out of three) and influence of the Protestants, had forced from their Austrian king an edict of toleration (July 11, 1609), which was at first faithfully observed; but during the reign of Matthias, sundry violations of it were made with impunity; and as the influence of Ferdinand of Styria, his successor, began to be felt in more flagrant partiality to the Catholics, the kingdom became a scene of wild excitement; three of the Catholic party were thrown from the window of the Bohemian council-chamber at Prague, and ultimately Ferdinand was deposed, and Frederick V., the Elector Palatinate, chosen in his stead (1619); and Count Thurn, at the head of an insurgent army, repeatedly routed the imperial troops, and actually besieged the emperor in Vienna. The Catholic princes, though as apprehensive as their opponents of the encroaching policy of Austria, crowded to the emperor’s aid; and while the Protestant union and James I. of Great Britain held aloof from Frederick, whose sole allies were Bohemians (under Thurn), Moravians, Hungarians, and a Piedmontese contingent of 3000 (under Count Mansfield), a well-appointed army of 30,000, under Duke Maximilian, advanced to support the Austrians, and totally routed Frederick’s motley array at Weissenberg (November 8, 1620), near Prague, afterwards reducing the Upper, while an army of Spaniards under Spinola ravaged the Lower, Palatinate, and the Saxons (in alliance with the emperor) occupied Lusatia. The Bohemians were now subjected to the most frightful tyranny and persecution; a similar policy, though of a more modern character, was adopted towards the people of the Palatinate,—the Protestant union standing aloof, and subsequently dissolving, through sheer terror. But the indomitable pertinacity and excellent leadership of Count Mansfield and Christian of Brunswick, two famous partisan leaders, who ravaged the territories of the Catholic league, and the forced cession to Bethlem Gabor of large portions of Hungary and Transylvania, did much to equalize the success of the antagonistic parties. Here the war might have ended; but the fearful tyranny of Ferdinand over all the Protestants in his dominions (Hungary excepted) drove them to despair, and the war advanced to its second phase. Christian IV. of Denmark, smarting under some injuries inflicted on him by the emperor, and aided by a British subsidy, came to the aid of his German co-religionists in 1624, and being joined by Mansfield and Christian of Brunswick, advanced into Lower Saxony, while the emperor, hampered by the political jealousy of the Catholic league, was unable to oppose him. But when, by the aid of Wallenstein, a powerful and effective army had been obtained, and the leaguers under Tilly, in co-operation with it, had marched northwards, the rout of the Danes by Tilly at Lutter (August 17, 1626), and of Mansfield by Wallenstein at Dessau (April 1, 11, and 25, 1626), again prostrated the Protestants’ hopes in the dust; yet a gleam of comfort was obtained from the victorious raid of Mansfield through Silesia, Moravia, and Hungary, though his scheme for an insurrection in Hungary failed, and his death soon after, at Zara, freed the emperor from a formidable and irreconcilable enemy. The combined Imperialists and leaguers mean time had overrun North Germany and continental Denmark, and ultimately compelled King Christian to conclude the humiliating peace of Lübeck (May 12, 1629). This second great success seems to have turned Ferdinand’s head, for, not content with still more rigorous treatment of the Protestants, and the promulgation of theRestitution Edict, which seriously offended even the Catholics, he stirred up Poland against Sweden, and insulted Gustavus Adolphus, both personally and in the persons of his ambassadors,—insolent impertinences which he soon saw bitter reason to regret. The Catholic league now forced him to reduce his army, and supplant Wallenstein by Tilly; while France was inciting Gustavus to the willing task of aiding the Protestants in Germany. The war entered its third phase by the landing of the Swedes at Usedom (June, 1630), and their conquest of Pomerania and Mecklenburg. Gustavus, by the exercise of a little wholesome pressure, induced the elector of Brandenburg to aid him; and though unable to save Magdeburg, he marched to join the Saxons, completely routed by Tilly at Breitenfeld (September 17, 1631); victoriously traversed the Main and Rhine valleys; again routed Tilly on the Lech (April 5, 1632), and entered Munich. By the judicious strategy of Wallenstein, he was compelled to return to Saxony, where he gained the great victory of Lützen; but his death, depriving the Protestants of the only man who could force the confederate powers to preserve unity of action, was a severe blow to their cause; though the genius and indefatigable zeal of his chancellor, Oxenstiern, and the brilliant talents of the Swedish generals, preserved the advantages they had gained, till the crushing defeat of Bernard of Weimar at Nordlingen (September 6, 1634) again restored to the emperor a preponderating influence in Germany. Saxony now made peace at Prague (May 30, 1635), obtaining such satisfactory terms for the Lutherans that the treaty was within three months adhered to by all the German princes of that sect, and the Calvinists were left to their fate. Final success now appeared to demand only one more strenuous effort on the part of Austria; but Oxenstiern resolvedto preserve to Sweden her German acquisitions, propitiated Richelieu, by resigning to him the direction of the war, and the conflict advanced into its final and most extended phase. The emperor, allied for offense and defense with the Lutherans, was now also assailed through his ally, Spain, who was attacked on her own frontier, in the Netherlands, and in Italy; Bernard of Weimar fighting independently, with the view of obtaining Alsace for himself, opposed the leaguers; while the Swedes under Banér held North Germany, and by frequent flying marches into Silesia and Bohemia distracted their opponents, and prevented them, after successes over Duke Bernard, from proceeding with the invasion of France. The great victory of Banér over the Austrians and Saxons at Wittstock (October 4, 1636) restored to Sweden the victor’s wreath she had lost two years before; and from this time, especially under Torstenson and Konigsmark, the Swedes were always successful, adding a second victory of Breitenfeld (November 2, 1642), one at Yankowitz (February 14, 1645), and numberless ones of less note, to their already long list of successes, carrying devastation and ruin into the hereditary territories, even to the gates of Vienna, defeating the best generals of the empire, till, from a profound feeling of inability to check them, the Austrians hardly dared appear to the north of the Danube. On the Rhine, the leaguers at first had great success,—the Weimar troops, now in French pay, were almost exterminated at Duttlingen (November 24, 1643); but after the Spanish power had been thoroughly broken in the Netherlands by Condé, the French were reinforced on the Rhine, and under Condé and Turenne, rolled back the leaguers through the Palatinate and Bavaria, and revenged at Nordlingen (August 3, 1645) the former defeat of the Swedes. The emperor was now deserted by all his allies except the Duke of Bavaria, whose territories were already mostly in the hands of Turenne and Wrangel; and a combined invasion of Austria from the west and north was on the point of being executed, when, after seven years of diplomatic shuffling, with an eye to the changing fortunes of the contest, the peace of Westphalia put an end to this terrible struggle.
Thistle, Order of the.SeeAndrew, St.
Thomas, St.The principal of the Virgin Islands in the West Indies, belonging to Denmark. In March, 1801, it was taken by the British, but given up at the peace of Amiens; it was again taken in the course of the subsequent war, and restored to Denmark at the peace of Paris in 1814.
Thorn.A fortified town of the kingdom of Prussia, in the province of West Prussia, on the right bank of the Vistula. It is defended by walls, bastions, and two forts. This town was founded by the Teutonic Knights in 1232, and admitted into the Hanseatic League in the beginning of the 14th century. It was taken by Charles XII. of Sweden in 1703, after a siege of four months.
Thrace.Anciently the name of an extensive country bounded on the north by the Danube, on the east by the Euxine, on the south by the Ægean and Macedonia, and on the west by Macedonia and Illyria. War and robbery were the only honorable occupations of the Thracians. They lived to steal, either from each other or from neighboring peoples. When not fighting or plundering, they spent their days in savage idleness, or in quarreling over their cups. Courageous, or rather ferocious, after the fashion of barbarous peoples, they yet lacked the steady valor and endurance of disciplined troops; at all times, their warfare displayed more fierceness and impetuosity than fortitude. In 513B.C., Darius, king of Persia, marched through Thrace on his way to punish the European Scythians, and on his return left Megabazus with 80,000 men to subdue the country. In this he partially succeeded, but new disturbances and complications arose between the Persians and Greeks, which resulted (480B.C.) in the famous expedition of Xerxes. The consequence of the expulsion of the Persians from Europe was the resumption of liberty and the revival of prosperity among the Greek colonies in Thrace. Shortly before the Peloponnesian war, a native Thracian state—the Odrysian—had attained to great power and eminence under a ruler named Sitalces, who joined the Athenian alliance, but could not, in spite of his resources, prevent the triumph of Sparta in the north as well as in the south. The rise of the Macedonian kingdom, under Philip II. (359B.C.), destroyed the independence of a great part of Thrace. Under the government of Lysimachus, the subjugation of Thrace became complete. On the fall of the Macedonian kingdom (168B.C.) it passed into the hands of the Romans, and subsequently shared the vicissitudes of the Roman empire. In 334 a colony of Sarmatians, and in 376 another of Goths, was planted in Thrace. In 395 it was overrun by Alaric, and in 447 by Attila. In 1353, Amurath obtained possession of all its fortresses, except Constantinople, and it has ever since remained in the possession of the Turks.
Thrasimenus Lacus.SeeTrasimenus Lacus.
Throw, To.To force anything from one place to another; thus, artillerists say, to throw a shot or shell, or so many shells were thrown.
Thrust.Hostile attack with any pointed weapon, as in fencing. When one party makes a push with his sword to wound his adversary with the point, it is called a thrust.
Thud.The sound of a bullet on hitting the intended object.
Thug.One of an association of robbers and murderers in India, who practiced murder not by open assault, but by stealthyapproaches, and from religious motives. They have been nearly exterminated by the British government.
Thumb-stall.SeeImplements.
Thunderbolt.In heraldry, a bearing borrowed from classical mythology, which may be described as a twisted bar in pale inflamed at each end surmounting two jagged darts in saltire between two wings displayed with streams of fire.
Thundering Legion.During a contest with the invading Marcomanni, the prayers of some Christians in a Roman legion are said to have been followed by a storm of thunder, lightning, and rain, which tended greatly to discomfit the enemy; and hence the legion received the name in 174.
Thurii, orThurium. A Greek city in the south of Italy, on the north shore of the Tarentine Gulf, was founded in 452B.C., by a body of Sybarite exiles, near the spot where their ancient city had stood till it was destroyed by the Crotonians fifty-eight years before. The rise of a new colony re-awakened the anger of the Crotonians, and after five years they expelled the Sybarites. These after an unsuccessful appeal to Sparta for assistance, applied to the Athenians, who resolved to send out a colony along with the persecuted Sybarites. The leaders of this colony were Lampon and Xenocritus. A war subsequently occurred between Thurii and Tarentum, but was terminated by a compromise. In 390B.C.the city received a severe blow from a total defeat of their army by the Lucanians. From this period it began to decline, and was at length obliged to submit to the Roman power, in order to escape the continued attacks of the Lucanians.
Thuringia.An early Gothic kingdom in Central Germany, was overrun by Attila and the Huns, 451; the last king, Hermanfried, was defeated and slain by Thierry, king of the Franks, who annexed it to his dominions, 530. It was after various changes and many conflicts, absorbed in Saxony in the 15th century. In 1815 it was surrendered to Prussia.
Thyatira.In Asia Minor; was the place assigned for the battle at which the rebel Procopius was defeated by the army of the emperor Valens in 366.
Thymbra.In Asia Minor, where Cyrus the Great defeated the confederate army aiding Crœsus, and obtained supremacy in Asia, 548.
Tiberias.A city in Palestine, built by Herod Antipas, and named after the emperor Tiberias in 39. Near it Guy de Lusignan, king of Jerusalem, and the Crusaders, were defeated by Saladin; and Jerusalem fell into his hands, 1187.
Ticino, orTessin. A Swiss canton south of the Alps; it was conquered by the Swiss early in the 16th century, and made a separate canton in 1815. It suffered by internal disputes in 1839 and 1841.
Ticinus(nowTessino). An important river in Northern Italy. It was upon the bank of this river that Hannibal gained his first victory over the Romans by the defeat of P. Scipio, 218B.C.
Ticonderoga.A town in Essex Co., N. Y., 95 miles north by east of Albany. Two or three miles below this village are the ruins of old Fort Ticonderoga, on the west shore of Lake Champlain. The fort was surprised by Col. Ethan Allen in the Revolutionary war.
Tien Tsin.A city of China, situated 70 miles southeast from Pekin. A treaty of amity and commerce was signed here between the French and English on the one hand, and the Chinese on the other, in 1858. The violation of this treaty, which was favorable to British interests in China, by the Chinese, was the cause of the subsequent Chinese war.
Tierce.A thrust in fencing, delivered at the outside of the body over the arm.
Tierce,Tiercé. In heraldry, a term of blazon used to indicate that the field is divided by lines into three equal parts. A shield may be tierce in pale, in fess, in bend, in bend sinister, or in pall; all which, with other arrangements in tierce, are common in French heraldry. Tierce in pale, in English heraldry, is an occasional mode of marshaling three coats in one escutcheon under special circumstances.
Tier-shot.Grape-shot is sometimes so called.
Tiflis.SeeTeflis.
Tige-arms.Sometimes called pillar breech-arms. Arms with a stem of steel, screwed into the middle of the breech-pin, around which the charge of powder is placed. The ball enters free and rests upon the top of the pin, which is tempered, and a few blows with a heavy ramrod force the ball to fill the grooves of the rifled arm. This invention was an improvement by Capt. Thouvenin on Delvignes’ plan of having a chamber for the powder smaller than the bore. Capt. Minié’s invention superseded the tige-arms, by means of a bullet which is forced to fill the grooves by the action of the charge itself at the instant of the explosion.
Tigranocerta(ruins atSert). The later capital of Armenia, built by Tigranes. It was taken by Lucullus and the Romans, after a great victory over Tigranes, in 69B.C.
Tigurini.A tribe of the Helvetii, who joined the Cimbri in invading the country of the Allobroges in Gaul, where they defeated the consul L. Cassius Longinus, 107B.C.They formed in the time of Cæsar the most important of the four cantons into which the Helvetii were divided.
Tilsit.A town of East Prussia, on the left bank of the Niemen, or Memel, 60 miles northeast from Königsberg. Tilsit will be ever memorable in history for the treaties which were there signed between France and Russia on July 7, and France and Prussia on July 9, 1807. By the former of theseNapoleon agreed to restore to the king of Prussia a great portion of his dominions, his Polish acquisitions being joined to Saxony, and his possessions west of the Elbe formed into the nucleus of the new kingdom of Westphalia; Danzig was declared an independent city; the Prussian province of Bialystock was ceded to Russia; the dukes of Oldenberg and Mecklenburg, the czar’s relatives, were reinstated by Napoleon, and in return the Bonapartist kings of Naples and Holland were recognized by the czar, etc. By the latter, the king of Prussia recognized the kings of Holland, Naples, and Westphalia, and the Confederation of the Rhine; agreed to the cessions laid down in the Russian treaty, and to other minor alienations and concessions to Saxony, amounting in all to nearly one-half of his dominions; to the exclusion from his harbors of the commerce of Great Britain, and to the occupation of the Prussian fortresses by the French, till the payment of an enormous ransom. The weighty importance of the alterations effected by this treaty is, however, dwarfed before the startling magnitude of thesecret provisionssigned between France and Russia. By these were arranged the resignation of the empire of the East to Russia, Roumelia and Constantinople being specially excepted by Napoleon, and the acquisition of the Spanish peninsula by France; the two powers were to make common cause against Great Britain, and were to force the three courts of Stockholm, Copenhagen, and Lisbon to join them; and Napoleon agreed to increase no further the power of the duchy of Warsaw, and to do nothing which might lead to the re-establishment of the Polish monarchy. By a further agreement, not put formally into writing, the mouths of the Cattaro, the Ionian Isles, Sicily, Malta, Egypt, and the papal dominions were to be taken by France; and Greece, Macedonia, Dalmatia, and the Adriatic coasts, as the portion of Turkey; while on the other hand, Russia was to obtain the rest of Turkey, and was allowed to seize Finland. These secret articles are given on most excellent authority, and their correctness is further vouched for by the conduct of France and Russia for the next few years.
Tilt.A thrust, or fight with rapiers; also, an old military game.
Tilted Steel.SeeOrdnance, Metals for, Steel.
Tilter.One who fights or contests in a tournament.
Tilting-helmet.A helmet of large size often worn over another at tilts.
Tilt-yard.Formerly a place or yard for tilting.
Timariot.A Turkish cavalry soldier who has a certain allowance made him, for which he is not only obliged to arm, clothe, and accoutre himself, but he must likewise provide a certain number of militia-men. The allowance is calledtimar.
Timars.Certain revenues, in Turkey, growing out of lands which originally belonged to Christian clergy and nobility, and which the sultans seized when they conquered the countries they inhabited. By this means the sultan is enabled to support thetimariots.
Timber.In heraldry, a rank or row, as of ermine, in a nobleman’s coat; also a crest. This word is also writtentimbre.
Timber Rafts.SeeRafts, Timber.
Timbuctoo.A celebrated city in the interior of Africa, on the slope of a hill about 8 miles south of the Niger. It is said to have been built by Mansa Suleiman, a Mohammedan, about 1214, and was frequently subjugated by the sovereigns of Morocco. Since 1727 it has been partially independent.
Time.The measure of duration by which soldiers regulate the cadence of the march.Common time, the ordinary time of marching, in which 90 steps, each 28 inches in length, are taken in one minute. SeeDouble-quick, andQuick Time.
Time.That necessary interval between each motion in the manual exercise, as well as in every movement the army or any body of men may make. In fencing there are three kinds of time: that of the sword, that of the foot, and that of the whole body.
Time.A particular period or part of duration, whether past, present, or future.
Apparent time, the time of day reckoned by the sun, or so that 12 o’clock at the place is the instant of the transit of the sun’s centre over the meridian.
Mean solar time, ormean time, time regulated by the average, or mean, instead of the unequal or apparent, motion of the sun; time as indicated by a uniformly-going clock, once rightly adjusted, and differing from apparent time at any instant by a small quantity called theequation of time.
Sidereal time, time regulated by the transit, over the meridian of a place, of the first point of Aries, or vernal equinox, and chiefly used in astronomical observations.
Solar time.SeeMean Solar Time.
Time of Flight.SeeFlight.
Time Thrust.In fencing, a thrust given upon any opening which may occur by an inaccurate or wide motion of your adversary, when changing his guard, etc.
Time-fuze.SeeFuze, Time-.
Timing.In fencing, is the accurate and critical throwing in of a cut or thrust upon any opening that may occur as your adversary changes his position.
Tin-case Shot.SeeCanister-shot.
Tinchebrai.A town of France, department of the Arne, 34 miles northwest from Alençon. Here Robert of Normandy was finally defeated by his brother, Henry I. of England, on September 28, 1106, and Normandy was annexed to the crown of England.
Tincture.In heraldry, one of the metals, colors, or furs used in armory.
Tindal.An attendant on the army in India.
Tinker.A small mortar formerly used on the end of a staff, now superseded by the Coehorn.
Tippecanoe.A river of Indiana, United States, which rises in a lake of the same name in the northern part of the State. It is famous for the battle fought on its banks, November 5, 1811, in which the Indians, under Tecumseh’s brother, the Prophet, were defeated by Gen. Harrison.
Tipperary.An inland county in the province of Munster, Ireland. Subsequently to the year 1172, Henry II. obtained possession of it after several sanguinary contests. The county suffered greatly during the civil wars of 1641, in the course of which the town of Clonmel, after a gallant resistance, obtained honorable terms from Cromwell, who conducted the siege in person.
Tipperary.A town of the county of the same name, on the river Arra, 111 miles southwest from Dublin. The town is of very ancient foundation, and soon after the invasion was occupied as a strong place by the English, who built a castle in it during the Irish expedition of King John. This castle, however, fell soon afterward into the hands of the Irish under the Prince of Thomond.
Tippermuir, orTibbermore. A town of Scotland, near Perth. Here the Marquis of Montrose defeated the Covenanters under Lord Elcho, September 1, 1644.
Tirailleur.A skirmisher, often put in front of the line to annoy the enemy, and draw off his attention; or they are left behind to amuse and stop his progress in the pursuit; a rifleman.
Tire.Are great guns, shot, shells, etc., placed in a regular form.
Tirlemont.A town of Belgium, province of Brabant, 25 miles east of Brussels. It was taken by the French in 1635; was ravaged by Marlborough in 1705; taken by the French in 1792; here the French, under Dumouriez, defeated the Austrians in 1793; taken by the French in 1794. Its fortifications were dismantled in 1804.
Tiryns.An ancient town of Argolis, southeast of Argos, and one of the most ancient in all Greece. Homer represents Tiryns as subject to Argos; the town was at a later time destroyed by the Argives, and most of the inhabitants were removed to Argos.
Titles, Military.See military titles under appropriate headings throughout this volume.
Tivoli.A town of Central Italy, on the left bank of the Teverone, 18 miles east-northeast from Rome. In the Middle Ages, Tivoli was an imperial city, independent of Rome, and was the occasion of many contentions between the emperors and the popes; in the course of which it was frequently taken and retaken as either party gained the ascendant.
Tlemsen, orTlemecen. A town of Algeria, in the province of Oran, 67 miles southwest from Oran. It was once an important place; but in consequence of a revolt of the inhabitants against his authority, Hassan, the dey of Algiers, laid it in ruins. It was occupied by the French in 1836 and 1842.
Tobago.One of the British islands in the West Indies, belonging to the Windward group. This island was first colonized by the Dutch, who were expelled by the Spaniards. It was then settled by the English, to whom it was ceded by the peace of 1763. In 1781 it was taken by the French, and in 1793 was retaken by the British, by whom it was retained at the peace of Amiens.
Tobitschau(Moravia). In a sharp action, on July 15, 1866, the Austrians were defeated by the army of the crown-prince of Prussia, with the loss of 500 killed and wounded, and 500 prisoners and 17 guns.
Tocsin.An alarm-drum; a bell. It was formerly used in an army as a signal for charging, on the approach of an enemy.
Toga Picta.Was an outer garment, worn by Roman generals in triumphs, by consuls under the empire, and by prætors when they celebrated games; and was embellished with Phrygian embroidery. In war the toga was laid aside for thesagumorpaludatogatus, or some less cumbrous style of attire.
Toggle and Chain.SeeOrdnance.
Toise.A measure derived from the French, containing 6 feet, and a term of frequent use in fortification and military surveying.
Toison d’Or(Fr.). SeeGolden Fleece.
Toledo(anc.Toletum). A city of Spain, capital of the province of the same name, on the north bank of the Tagus, 55 miles south-southwest from Madrid. It was conquered by the Romans under M. Fulvius, 192B.C.(193B.C.); was captured by the Goths, 467; possessed by the Moors from 714 to 1085. Alfonso VI. of Castile and Leon recovered it from the Moors.
Toledo.An esteemed Spanish sword, so called from the place of manufacture.
Tolenon(Fr.). An ancient machine of war, having a long lever moving on a pivot, suspended from an upright higher than the rampart, having at one end a box to contain 20 men, who, by drawing down the other end, might be raised high enough to fire into the loop-holes, or even to get upon the wall.
Tolentino.A town of Italy, province of Macerata, 12 miles from Macerata. It was here, in February, 1797, that the pope ceded the Romagna to the French republic by treaty, and in May, 1815, Murat retired to this place with his troops before the Austrians, and was defeated.
Tolosa.A town of Spain, province of Guipuzcoa, on the Oria, 35 miles southwest from Bayonne. Near here, Alfonso, king of Castile, aided by the kings of Aragon and Navarre, gained a great victory over theMoors, July 16, 1212. This conflict is sometimes termed the battle of Muradal. It was occupied by the French from 1808 till 1813.
Tomahawk.A light war-hatchet of the North American Indians. The early ones were rudely made of stone, ingeniously fastened to their handles by animal sinews, or cords of skin. Traders supplied hatchets of steel, the heads of which were made hollow, for a tobacco-pipe; the handle of ash, with the pith removed, being the stem. These hatchets are used in the chase and in battle, not only in close combat, but by being thrown with a wonderful skill, so as always to strike the object aimed at with the edge of the instrument. The handles are curiously ornamented. In the figurative language of the Indians, to make peace, is to bury the tomahawk; to make war, is to dig it up.
Toman.In the East Indies, signifies 10,000 men.
Tom-tom.A large, flat drum, used by the Hindoos; a tam-tam.
Tongue.The pole of an ox-cart (local).
Tongue of a Sword.That part of the blade on which the gripe, shell, and pummel are fixed. The bayonet is figuratively called a triangular tongue, from its shape.
Tonnelon(Fr.). An ancient drawbridge, used nearly in the same manner and for similar purposes as theharpeandexostre.
Tonquin, orTonkin. The northernmost province of Anam, Southeast Asia. Tonquin was conquered by the Chinese in 1406, and by the Anamese in 1790.
Tooksowars(Ind.). The vizier’s body of cavalry.
Topekhana(Ind.). The place where guns are kept; the arsenal.
Topeys, orTopgis. Turkish artillerymen or gunners.
Topgi-Bachi.Master-general of the Turkish artillery.
Topikhannah(Ind.). A house for keeping guns; an arsenal; an armory.
Töplitz.A town of Bohemia. Here were signed, in 1813, two treaties,—one between Austria, Russia, and Prussia, September 9; and one between Great Britain and Austria, October 3.
Topographical Engineers.The duties of this corps consist in surveys for the defense of the frontiers and of positions for fortifications; in reconnoissances of the country through which an army has to pass, or in which it has to operate; in the examination of all routes of communication by land or by water, both for supplies and military movements; in the construction of military roads and permanent bridges connected with them; and the charge of the construction of all civil works authorized by acts of Congress, not specially assigned by law to some other branch of the service. The U. S. Corps of Topographical Engineers was merged into the Corps of Engineers in 1863.
Topography.Is the art of representing and describing in all its details the physical constitution, natural or artificial, of any determined portion of a country; in making maps and giving a descriptive memoir. Military topography differs from geography in seeking to imitate sinuosities of ground: it represents graphically and describes technically commanding heights, water-courses, preferable sites for camps, different kinds of roads, the position of fords, and extent of woods. It enumerates the resources that a country offers to troops and the difficulties which are interposed. By means of colored maps and other conventional signs, military topography presents before the eyes of a general much that is necessary to guide his operations.
Torce, orWreath. In heraldry, a garland of twisted silk, by which the crest is joined to the helmet. A crest is always understood to be placed on a torce, unless where it is expressly stated to issue out of a coronet or chapeau.
Torches.SeePyrotechny.
Tordesillas.A town of Spain, province of Valladolid. Here was signed, in 1494, a treaty modifying the boundary-line which Pope Alexander VI. had assigned, in 1493, in his division of the New World between Spain and Portugal.
Torgau.A fortified town of Prussian Saxony, on the left hank of the Elbe, 70 miles south-southwest from Berlin. Here a battle was fought between Frederick II. of Prussia and the Austrians, in which the former obtained a signal victory, the Austrian general, Count Daun, a renowned warrior, being wounded, November 3, 1760. It was besieged and taken by the allied Prussians and Saxons in January, 1814; the besieged lost about 30,000 men.
Tormentum.A pistol; a gun; a piece of ordnance.
Tormes.A river of Spain, falls into the Douro, on the borders of Portugal. Its banks were the scene of many conflicts between the French and Spaniards during the Peninsular war, from 1808 to 1814.
Toro.A city of Spain, province of Leon, on the Douro, 20 miles east from Zamora. Ferdinand the Catholic defeated Alonzo V. of Portugal near this place in 1476, and gained the kingdom of Castile for himself and his wife Isabella.
Toronto.The capital of the province of Ontario, Canada, on the north shore of Lake Ontario, 165 miles from Kingston, and 323 miles from Montreal. Its harbor or bay is capable of accommodating the largest vessels that navigate the lakes, and is defended at the entrance by a fort, which was thoroughly repaired in 1864 by the imperial government, and mounted with the most efficient modern ordnance. The town was founded in 1794, by Gov. Simcoe. It was burned by the Americans in 1813, and suffered severely in the insurrection of 1837, on which occasion it was the headquarters of the rebellion.
Torpedo.During the war between GreatBritain and the United States in 1812-14, this name was applied to certain mysterious boats invented by Fulton and other Americans for the purpose of navigating beneath the surface of the water, and injuring the bottom of hostile vessels. In those days of hand-to-hand naval war, these designs (which, by the way, were failures) were looked upon as little less than diabolical. The progress of destructive weapons during half a century has removed this aversion, and nations do not scruple now to employ similar unseen agents for offense and defense. The modern torpedo is really a stationary bomb-shell, intended to explode under the bottom of an enemy’s ship. The weapon was first used by the Russians in the Baltic in 1854; and in the American war of Secession, 1861-65, it was employed extensively, and often successfully. The damage effected by a torpedo exploding beneath a ship is very great; and although the failures are frequent by the explosion happening at a wrong moment, the danger from torpedoes is considerable in fact, and far more in apprehension, for sailors naturally dread navigating waters where destruction lurks at unknown points concealed from view. There are several varieties of torpedoes, but they may be divided into two classes,—those which are self-explosive on a ship touching them, and those which are dependent on an electric current supplied from the shore. The second are the safest for friendly vessels; but they are rather uncertain in action, and can only be employed at a moderate distance from the shore. The first are more certain in action, as they can only explode on a ship, being somewhere in contact, but they attack indiscriminately friend and foe.
Torque(Fr.). A metal collar formerly bestowed upon a Roman soldier who had killed his adversary in a single combat.
Torqued.In heraldry, twisted; bent;—said of a dolphin haurient, which forms a figure like the letterS.
Torre di Mare.A village of Naples, at the mouth of the Bassento, in the Gulf of Taranto. Its prosperity received a fearful blow when, after the battle of the Metaurus (207B.C.), Hannibal was compelled to give up this part of Italy, and carried with him all the citizens of Megapontum, in order to defend them from the vengeance of the Romans. In the time of Cicero the city still existed, but in a state of rapid decay.
Torres-Vedras.A town of Estremadura, kingdom of Portugal, on the left bank of the Sizandro, about 30 miles north of Lisbon. It derives its reputation solely from having given name to those famous lines of defense within which Wellington took refuge in 1810, when he found it impossible to defend the frontier of Portugal against the French armies; and from which, in the year following, he issued on that career of slow and hard-won victory which ended in the expulsion of the French from the Peninsula. Thefirst, or outermost of these lines, extending from Alhandra, on the Tagus, to the mouth of the Sizandro, on the sea-coast, and following the windings of the hills, was 29 miles long; thesecond(and by far the most formidable) lay from 6 to 10 miles behind the first, stretching from Quintella, on the Tagus, to the mouth of the St. Lorenza, a distance of 24 miles; thethird, situated to the southwest of Lisbon, at the very mouth of the Tagus, was very short, being intended to cover a forced embarkation, if that had become necessary. The entire ground thus fortified was equal to 500 square miles.
Torrington.A town of England, county of Devon, 10 miles south-southwest of Barnstaple. The name of Torrington emerges frequently during the great civil war; and the capture of the town by Fairfax in 1646, on which occasion the church, with 200 prisoners, and those who guarded them, were blown into the air by gunpowder, proved fatal to the king’s cause in the west.
Torse, orTorce. In heraldry, a wreath.
Tortona.A town of Italy, province of Alessandria, on a hill nearly 900 feet above the sea. Tortona was once a strongly fortified city, but its last defenses were destroyed by order of Napoleon, after the battle of Marengo.
Tortosa.A town of Spain, in Catalonia, on the Ebro, 42 miles southwest from Tarragona. It was taken by the French under Suchet in 1811.
Tortu d’Hommes(Fr.). A particular formation which was formerly adopted by the besieged when they made a sortie.
Tory.The word tory first occurs in English history in 1679, during the struggle in Parliament occasioned by the introduction of the bill for the exclusion of the Duke of York from the line of succession, and was applied by the advocates of the bill to its opponents as a title of obloquy or contempt. The name has, however, ceased to designate any existing party; the political successors of the tories are now commonly known as conservatives. In the Revolutionary war of the United States, the loyalists were calledtories.
Touch-box.A box containing lighted tinder, formerly carried by soldiers who used matchlocks, to kindle the match.
Touch-hole.The vent of a cannon or other species of fire-arms, by which fire is communicated to the powder of the charge.
Toula, orTula. An important town of Great Russia, capital of the government of the same name, on the Upa, 110 miles south of Moscow. It is an ancient town, and has suffered severely from Tartar invasion, and during the wars of the commencement of the 17th century. The Russian army is largely supplied with muskets and small-arms from the works of this town.
Toulon.A great seaport and naval arsenal of France, department of Var. It stands at the head of a deeply-penetrating inlet of the Mediterranean. It is a fortress of immense strength, and is surrounded bya double rampart, and by a wide and deep fosse. Toulon was destroyed by the Saracens in 889, and again by them about the close of the 12th century. It was only at the end of the 16th century that Toulon came to be important as a naval and military stronghold. In 1707, it was assailed without success by the Duke of Savoy by land, and the English and Dutch by sea. It was taken by the English and Spaniards in 1793; but the allies were obliged to evacuate the town in December of the same year, after being fiercely attacked by the republicans, whose guns were commanded by Napoleon,—then a simple officer of artillery,—who here evinced for the first time his genius and self-reliance.
Toulouse(anc.Tolosa). An important city of France, capital of the department of Haute-Garonne, on the right bank of the river Garonne, 160 miles southeast of Bordeaux. The ancientTolosaand its temple were plundered by the consul Q. Servilius Cæpio in 106B.C.It was ravaged by the Visigoths and Franks, who successively overran and possessed the country. A battle was fought here in 1814, between Wellington and Soult, in which the latter was defeated, and obliged to evacuate the town.
Tour, orTurn. That which is done by succession.Tour of duty, turn to go on duty.
Tourbillon.SeePyrotechny.
Tournament, orTournay. A military sport of the Middle Ages, in which combatants engaged one another with the object of exhibiting their courage, prowess, and skill in the use of arms, or for the honor of the ladies attending. According to Ducange, the difference between a tournament and ajoustis, that the latter is a single combat, while in the former a troop of combatants encounter each other on either side. But this distinction has not been always observed.
Tournay(anc.Tornacum, orTurris Nerviorum, “Fort of the Nerviiâ€). A fortified town of Belgium, province of Hainault, on both sides of the Scheldt, near the French frontier. It was in the 5th and beginning of the 6th centuries the seat of the Merovingian kings, subsequently belonged to France, but at the peace of Madrid was included in the Spanish Netherlands. Subsequently it was oftener than once taken by France, but again restored by treaty. During the month of May, 1794, it was the scene of several hotly contested fights between the French and Austro-English armies, the most important of which was that of May 19, in which Pichegru heat the Duke of York.
Tours.A city of France, capital of the department of Indre-et-Loire, 146 miles southwest from Paris. Near it Charles Martel gained a great victory over the Saracens, and saved Europe, October 10, 732. This conflict was also called the battle of Poitiers. The church was pillaged by the Huguenots and utterly destroyed, with the exception of two towers, at the revolution.
Tower.A citadel; a fortress; hence, a defender.
Tower Bastion.In fortification, is one which is constructed of masonry, at the angles of the interior polygon of some works; and has usually vaults or casemates under its terre-plein, to contain artillery, stores, etc.
Tower of London.In feudal days, a powerful fortress; then, and long after, a state prison of gloomy memories; now a government store-house and armory, and still in some sense a stronghold; is an irregular quadrilateral collection of buildings on rising ground adjoining the Thames, and immediately to the east of the city of London. The kings frequently resided there, holding their courts, and not unfrequently sustaining sieges and blockades from their rebellious subjects. At present, the Tower of London is a great military store-house in charge of the war department, containing arms and accoutrements for the complete equipment of a large army. It is needless to say that, viewed as a fortress, the Tower would be useless against modern arms. The government is vested in a constable, who has great privileges, and is usually a military officer of long service and distinguished mark; the deputy-constable, also a general officer of repute, is the actual governor. He has a small staff under him, and the corps of Yeomen of the Guard, more commonly known as Beef-eaters.
Towered.Adorned or defended by towers.
Towers, Movable.Thepurgiof the Greeks, and theturres mobilesof the Romans, consisted of several stories, furnished with engines, ladders, casting-bridges, etc., and moving on wheels, for the purpose of being brought near the walls. They were usually of a round form, though sometimes square or polygonal. Before the invention of guns, they used to fortify places with towers, and to attack them with movable towers of wood, mounted on wheels, to set the besiegers on a level with the walls, and drive the besieged from under the same. These towers were sometimes 20 stories, and 30 fathoms high. They were covered with raw skins, and 100 men were employed to move them.
Tow-hooks.SeeImplements.
Town-Adjutant,Town-Major. In Great Britain, officers on the staff of a garrison. They are often veteran officers, too much worn for field service. The pay depends on the magnitude of the trust. The town-major ranks as a captain; the adjutant as a lieutenant. The duties of these officers consist in maintaining discipline, and looking after the finding of the batteries, etc.